Is Dragon's Approach a Commander Killer? How to Optimize this Mono Red Combo. By Shawn Wasserman

Is Dragon's Approach a Commander Killer? How to Optimize this Mono Red Combo. By Shawn Wasserman

Is Dragon's Approach a Commander Killer? How to Optimize this Mono Red Combo.

 


As soon as I saw Dragon’s Approach it got my gears moving. The sorcery card does 3 damage to each opponent and you can have any number of them in your deck. That alone would be enough for a combo player like me. 

However, the fact that you can exile a bunch of these cards from your graveyard, whenever it resolves, to tutor dragons makes it too good to be true. The card begs for some optimization.

Synergizing “Any Number Cards” with Thrumming Stone

It’s contentious to use cards in EDH that bear the words: “a deck can have any number of cards named.” So, if you plan on using them, speak to your playgroups. Examples include: Persistent Petitioners (a human that mills opponents), Rat Colony and Relentless Rats (which both go wide and tall).

 

 

But the card most similar to Dragon’s Approach is Shadowborn Apostle. It tutors for a Demon and puts it into play for the price of one black mana and sacrificing 6 identical Apostles. 

 

One thing all these cards have in common on EDHREC is that they are often paired with Thrumming Stone, an artifact that grants spells you control Ripple 4. To those unfamiliar with the keyword Ripple—I don’t blame you, it only appears on 6 cards from Coldsnap. It’s rules read:

“When you cast this spell, you may reveal the top four cards of your library. You may cast spells with the same name as this spell from among those cards without paying their mana costs. Put the rest on the bottom of your library.”

In a singleton format like EDH, Ripple doesn’t work in the vast majority of decks. But for any deck featuring cards like Dragon’s Approach, it is the star of the ninety nine. With the Stone in play, each time you cast Dragon’s Approach you can dig four cards into your deck and cast any other Dragon’s Approach from among them. Each time those spells resolve, you get to dig four deep once again. With enough Approaches in your deck, the combo can become self-sustaining, casting a storm at sorcery speed that drains your opponents of life. 

Just remember that the Ripple rules contain the words “you may reveal the top four cards of your library.” So, have no fears of milling yourself with Thrumming Stone. 

Perhaps the best advantage Dragon’s Approach has to similar cards is that it has utility in the graveyard. So, if your combo gets disrupted, it isn’t a total loss because now you can tutor for game ending Dragons.

A Commander That Tutors for Dragons and Artifacts

Since the goal of this deck is to get Thrumming Stone out, protect it, and combo, the easiest way to build it would be to utilize WUBRG colors:

This opens your commander options to the best Dragon tribal cards in the game, such as: The Ur-Dragon, Scion of the Ur Dragon, Morophon, the Boundless, and Niv-Mizzet Reborn. Keep in mind WUBRG dragon players, Tiamat, was recently spoiled for Adventures in the Forgotten Realms.

I’ve never been about building easy decks, just interesting ones. In my opinion the most interesting build of a combo deck is the most challenging build. So, since the combo only needs access to one color, let’s see what it takes to optimize Dragon’s Approach in mono-red. And, since this deck is all about tutoring dragons, who better to lead it than Magda, Brazen Outlaw?

 

 

Magda is a 2/1 Dwarf Berserker that gives other Dwarves +1/+0. And each time a dwarf is tapped it nabs you a free treasure token. Not only can these treasures be used to ramp, they can also be sacrificed with Magda’s ability to tutor artifacts, or dragons into play.

So, not only can Magda nab you Thrumming Stone, she can also bring a game ending dragon into the fray. Speaking of artifacts, you might want to add some to your deck that protect the Stone or increase it’s consistency. I suggest:

  • Trading Post: to get a Swiss-Army knife that can get the Stone from the graveyard
  • Myr Retriever: and similar artifact creatures that reanimate artifacts
  • Myr Welder: to exile the Stone from a graveyard to copy it’s ability

Other potential includes that protect the Stone and increase it’s consistency include:

Mana Dork Dwarves?!

Dwarves aren’t known for their ability to ramp. However, when Madga is on the table, that will be their primary focus in your deck. Keep your eyes out for ones that have abilities that offer utility and tap the creature, without putting them in the line of fire. 

 

Axgard Cavalry is a perfect example. It’s a 2/2 dwarf berserker for colorless and a red that taps to temporarily give a creature haste. It’s a great card for when you get a dragon into play. But, keep in mind, you can also tap utility dwarves, like Axgard, during someone else’s turn to get a treasure and a favor from an opponent.

Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of dwarves that tap for free. So there aren’t a ton of pseudo-mana dork options. As a result, add some standard mana rocks into this deck like Sol Ring, Mind Stone or Fire Diamond. Nonetheless, pseudo-mana dork  dwarves to consider include:

 

 

That being said, Dwarven Bloodboiler is a perfect pairing with Magda. It’s a 2/2 dwarf for three red. It can safely tap any untapped dwarf you control to give a target creature +2/0 for a turn. With this and Magda in play, all your dwarves are pseudo-mana dorks.

Storm-Kiln Artist is another good pairing in this build. With all the Dragon’s Approach being played, his Magecraft ability will create a lot of treasures, which plays well with Magda’s tutoring abilities. Additionally, the creation of all these treasures will beef up the Artist’s power.

More Dwarven Utility

You might want a few dwarves in the deck that can get in the fray for some damage. Remember, with Magda in play, they will net you a treasure when they attack. 

 

 

For these dwarves, I suggest ones with evasion, attack triggers, or a beefy body like Dwarven Grunt, Dwarven Vigilantes, or Dwarven Strike Force respectfully. But, the best inclusion for this category would be Torbran, Thane of Red Fell. He’s a Legendary 2/4 Dwarf Noble that boosts the damage output of all red sources.

If dwarves are of major interest to you, then Dwarven Recruiter would be a great inclusion. This creature enters play and searches your library for any number of dwarfs and puts them on top of your library. Some potential includes that turn the Recruiter into a Swiss Army Knife are:

Finally, don’t pass up on Dwarven Mine, it’s a mountain that can tap for red and creates a 1/1 red dwarf creature token.

The Dragons Approach

Last but not least, let’s look at some dragons to help finish the game.

 

 

Hoarding Dragon isn't typically what I call “game ending,” but in this build it can be. It’s a 4/4 flying dragon for three and two red that tutors up an artifact and exiles it. When the dragon dies, it brings that artifact to your hand. So, consider it as another tutor for Thrumming Stone.

Two legendary dragons that can end the game for are Drakuseth, Maw of Flames and Lathliss, Dragon Queen. Whenever Drakuseth attacks, it does 4 damage to any target and 3 damage to each of up to two other targets. It’s a cheaper option than Terror of the Peaks, which has a powerful trigger to damage any target whenever your creatures enter the battlefield. If this sort of thing appeals to you, also consider Tyrant’s Familiar; when your commander is in play, it gets a boost and the attack trigger to deal 7 damage to a creature controlled by a defending player. 

The Dragon Queen, on the other hand, will net you a token 5/5 dragon with flying whenever a nontoken dragon enters the battlefield. She can also firebreath (aka pump by +1/+0) every dragon on the board for one and a red. If Lathliss is your kind of jam, also consider Utvara Hellkite, it creates a 6/6 token dragon with flying whenever a dragon you control attacks.

Other dragons to consider include:

Clearly, Dragon’s Approach offers a considerable amount of combos that kill Commander. If combos like this are your cup of tea, then read the article: Destroy Commander with Beautiful, Infinite Landfall Combos.